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Economy & Business

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Kuwait's Zain eyes $1.5B mobile network in postwar Syria: What to know

The Kuwaiti company is planning to invest more than $1.5 billion in Syria after securing a license to operate there, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images

Here's what to know about Iraq's corruption as Zaidi launches crackdown

Watchdogs and financial institutions regard Iraq as a significantly corrupt country as the new prime minister works to recover public funds.

AFP via Getty Images

Traffic plummets through Strait of Hormuz after Iran, US trade fire

Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz had recovered somewhat before renewed fighting between Iran and the United States saw traffic drop sharply over the weekend.

A student attends a training seminar at the Tourism Ministry Training center in the city of Riyadh on August 30, 2022.

Interview

Saudi labor localization will take ‘generation or two': Armada CEO

Around 70% of Saudi Arabia's population is 35 years old or younger, according to the kingdom’s General Authority for Statistics, providing ample opportunity for an educated and technology-savvy national workforce in the coming decades.

Olivier Badard

CEO of Armada Holding

Latest News

Analysis

Why the Hormuz oil shock never became an energy catastrophe

A tourist boat passes near crude oil tankers, bulk carriers, and other vessels anchored off Port Sultan Qaboos in Muscat, Oman, June 19, 2026.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Explainer

Gulf states push incentives for investors, expats after war dents image

FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images

United Arab Emirates

Explainer

After UAE and Qatar, could Iraq be next to leave OPEC?

A worker at a market for fuel oil and automotive fuel on March 17, 2026, in Erbil, Iraq.

Explainer

Syria’s energy push could soon get a major boost from Chevron: What to know

Amjad Kurdo / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

Samuel Wendel

Senior Market Research Analyst

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Jack Dutton

Chief Business Correspondent

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

Vanessa Ghanem

In Dubai, reporting on business, energy and politics

Francisco Serrano

In Lisbon, reporting on North Africa business

TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY SALAM FARAJ An Iraqi money dealer counts Iranian rial banknotes bearing a portrait of the late founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, at an exchange office in Baghdad on February 3, 2012. Tens of thousands of Iranian visitors have been finding difficulty in using the Iranian currency in Iraq due to a depreciation of the rial against the dollar. AFP PHOTO/ ALI AL-SAADI (Photo credit should read ALI AL-SAADI/AFP/GettyImages)

How will uncertainty and government policies impact Iran’s economic outlook in 2024?

Bijan Khajehpour

Bijan Khajehpour

In Vienna, reporting on Iranian politics

Getty Images

China's Nio electric vehicle maker gets $2.2 billion from UAE investment firm

Nio is seeking money from the Middle East due to its financial struggles.

Getty Images

BP, Equinor change oil shipment plans after Red Sea Houthi attacks

The Iran-backed rebels have said the attacks are in retaliation for the war in Gaza.

People wait at a gas station as fuel distribution across more than 70% of gas stations is disrupted, Tehran, Iran, Dec. 18, 2023.

Iran says ‘enemy conspiracy’ behind outage at 70% of gas stations

The Oil Ministry’s Shana news agency reported that operations will be running again as normal within “a few hours” and until then fuel is being distributed offline.

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA - OCTOBER 31: The Skyline of Riyadh is seen on October 31, 2023 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is set to host the men's 2034 World Cup after Fifa confirmed it was the only bidder for the tournament. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

Saudi Arabia’s multinational HQ deadline nears amid uncertainty for companies and Gulf competition

Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

A picture taken on November 23, 2016 shows smoke plumes rising behind a billboard at the Maaden Aluminium Factory in Ras Al-Khair Industrial area near Jubail City, 570 kms east of the Saudi capital Riyadh.

Middle East transparency on carbon emissions lags behind rest of world

Turkey and the UAE led the pack for most transparent countries in the region regarding greenhouse gas emissions.

United Arab Emirates

People wave Hezbollah and Iranian flags at a rally in Baalbek, Lebanon, May 13, 2022.

Britain hits Iran and its foreign proxies with fresh sanctions

The measures, coordinated with the United States, also target Iran's shipping sector and drone exports.

Pedestrians walk past a billboard announcing the World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund annual meetings, where the organizations looked to scale up and retool to pursue ambitious global climate goals, Washington, DC, Oct. 5, 2023.

World Bank ups Middle East climate financing to $10B by 2025

The global lender provided $6.3 billion in climate financing for the MENA region between 2021 and 2023, much of it focused on mitigation and adaptation.

COP28 conclusion

COP28: historic deal agreed for world to ‘transition away’ from fossil fuels

The summit stretched into prolonged negotiations over the terminology of the final text, after the “phase out” of fossil fuels was omitted from the draft a day before the scheduled end of the event.

United Arab Emirates

Saudi Arabia's Minister of Investment Khalid Al-Falih speaks on stage during the 2022 Concordia Annual Summit at the Sheraton Hotel, New York, Sept. 19, 2022.

China-Saudi Investment Conference begins in Beijing

China is Saudi Arabia’s largest trading partner and biggest customer of its primary commodity: crude oil.

Bahrain's Investcorp buys 50% of Corsair's $4.8B infrastructure business

The new entity, Investcorp Corsair, will continue to grow with a particular focus on transportation, logistics and related subsectors, a statement from the two companies said.

A general view during the star-studded Sake Ceremony hosted by Nobu Matsuhisa and Meir Teper to inaugurate the grand opening of Nobu Dubai, at Atlantis The Palm, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Jan. 20, 2023.

First commercial brewery to open in United Arab Emirates

Previously, the only way a vendor or business could sell beer in the UAE would be if it was manufactured overseas.

United Arab Emirates